That Which Is Lost
by Ryuuko1
Summary: Kyuuzou was a superb warrior to begin with. What happens when he is captured and taken to a place where the very thing that he and the other 6 samurai are fighting against are made...?
1. Chapter 1

Kanbei was god-like, but he wasn't a god. He was a man, and could be overwhelmed like any other. He was falling back under the concentrated attacks of Red Spiders and footsoldiers, two replacing each one that he cut down. Kyuuzou turned away from his fights, able to dispatch each opponent almost carelessly, and saw Kanbei's plight. It was supposed to be a general attack, but apparently it was more to wipe out Kanbei than anything else.

And that Kyuuzou would never allow.

He lunged away from his fight, and cut down two of Kanbei's assailants effortlessly, hacking his way towards Kanbei. eventually he found himself fighting back-to-back with Kanbei, and their opponents quickly thinned as the smarter ones decided not to face the skill of Kanbei coupled with Kyuuzou's possessiveness and speed.

The battle slowly died down, and the two men were able to pause, listening for any more attackers. When all that greeted them was silence and the stirrings of wildlife, they relaxed as much as either allowed in the presence of the other. Kyuuzou turned to face Kanbei and admirably hid his shock at the long gash on Kanbei's left arm.

'He had been fighting with only his right hand this whole time...'

Kanbei was pale from bloodloss and let his katana slip from his hands, other hand closing around his wounded arm, trying to staunch the bloodflow. He did not hear Kyuuzou approach, and only noticed him when he pulled Kanbei's injured arm away from him. Kanbei hissed with pain and glared at Kyuuzou, his temper short with pain. He was startled though, at how gentle Kyuuzou's hands were as he parted Kanbei's clothing to get a better look at the gash. After examining it, he looked up at Kanbei, his eyes nonchalant.

"There's a river near here. I won't let you die of an infection. Not before we have our duel."

Kanbei nodded, the ghost of a wry smile on his lips.

Kyuuzou let go of Kanbei's arm and led him on silently. Kanbei followed, growing slowly more tired as the weariness that hit him after every battle slowly worked its way into him. Not looking where he was going, he tripped inelegantly over a tree root. He braced himself for the fall, but instead felt two strong arms catch him around the waist, carefully avoiding his injured arm.

"Idiot."

Kyuuzou half-carried,half-dragged Kanbei the rest of the way to the river. He laid the man on the bank and tore away the bloody cloth that was clinging to the wound. Gently, he placed the wounded arm into the icy river, making Kanbei shudder. Kyuuzou watched and waited as the arm slowly became its natural tan hue again, rather than sticky red with blood, finally letting him see the true extent of the wound.

Kyuuzou was impressed, though he would never let it show. It was bad, cutting through both fat and muscle, close to the bone. He would have to make a tourniquet if Kanbei was to even last the night. He left Kanbei's arm in the water before taking off his coat, and tearing strips off his shirt. (He would never do that to his coat.) Once he had enough cloth, he looked around for a pair of sticks that would be able to press onto the skin around the wound, staunching the bloodflow. satisfied after a few moments of searching, he returned to Kanbei and took his arm out of the water. He worked quickly, finding the right place to put the sticks before wrapping them tightly with the strips of cloth, closing the wound. He'd have to be careful to change the tourniquet after a while. He didn't want Kanbei to lose the use of his left arm. He placed Kanbei's arm next to Kanbei's body, and watched his laboured breathing, frowning. Hopefully the bloodloss would not have drained him. He looked at his discarded jacket and sighed inaudibly. He picked it up and gently laid it on Kanbei's body, trying to cover as much as he could. Damn the cold up in these mountains. It wasn't good for the injured. After making certain Kanbei was as comfortable as possible,he retrieved the other man's sword. He sat down on a nearby tree, and looked the sword over. It was starting to lose its edge--Kanbei would have to sharpen it again soon. It was caked in oil and blood, but even so, the craftsmanship shone through. The blade was still strong, even after many year's usage. The handle was ill-fitted for Kyuuzou's hand, but he assumed that was because it had been crafted to Kanbei's grip. Overall, he approved. It was a good companion for the skilled samurai. He washed it off and then laid it next to the now unconscious man. Suddenly a thought struck him, making him start.

Why was he doing this for Kanbei? What was the purpose?

He shook his head, uneasy, and washed off his hands. He stood, the wind cold against his bare arms and partially uncovered torso. After the battle, he hadn't even considered asking the others for help. It was beneath his pride. But where were they now?

Why were there so many goddamned questions tonite!

Questions he had no answers to.

And some that he didn't even want an answer to.

He retrieved his swords and held them lightly in each hand. He knew these. He knew this life. He had found all the answers he had ever wanted in killing, in battle. It wasn't until he fought with Kanbei that he started asking questions that had no answers. He betrayed his master, left his comrade(whom he had barely tolerated), and for what?

To protect farmers from mechanical samurai.

Why should he have cared? But it wasn't for the farmers he went.

He went because of Kanbei.

He had heard stories about him, and so had idly wondered about what it would be like to face him. When he finally did, he found that he hadn't wanted to stop fighting him. It was a larger thrill than anything else he had experienced before. It was as if he had begun fighting again, having finally found a challenge. It was fun once more, rather than just going through the motions. It was slightly strange...but it was almost as if he wanted to prove himself to Kanbei; prove he was a better, more worthy warrior than a hero of so many wars.

So foolish.

He turned and looked back at the wounded man, breathing lightly, more easily, deep in exhausted sleep. Kyuuzou looked at his swords. It would be so easy to kill him right now. Wounded, unconscious...its what his assassin instincts told him to do.

But he wouldn't.

But why not?

He swung one sword in a graceful arc to stop it right over Kanbei's throat.

Because it would be dishonorable to kill such an opponent while he was wounded and unable to respond. Because he was needed by others, and Kanbei felt responsible for them. Because he was too good a warrior to die in such a disgraceful way. And...because Kyuuzou needed him alive. He was the constant challenge, the motivation that drove him to excel. He pulled his sword away and sheathed it, disgusted with himself. Too sentimental. He was becoming too attached to someone who could be used against him, someone he could lose. Caring for someone would make him weak, and that would not do. His lips curled back in a silent snarl, irritated with himself, allowing himself briefly to feel a flash of anger before pulling himself into control again. His eyes regained their sleepy, careless look and he turned, content to wait for the dawn. It was not intelligent to move hindered by an injured man,and in the dark. Here, at least, he could make a stand against anyone who would try to attack him. Not like any of the Nobuseri would after so recent a defeat; they were machines, but they had once been samurai, and so weren't entirely stupid. He closed his eyes and listened intently, calming himself,pushing the irritating questions to the back of his mind. Emotions were stupid, and he couldn't allow himself to feel beyond the desire to fight and to become better. Anything aside from those two emotions weren't worth his time...but whenever he looked at Kanbei, there was something else. Something else beside the desire to grind Kanbei's skills into the dust, to defeat him. That something was why he kept on putting off their duel, and he believed that there was a shadow of the same emotion in Kanbei. He could have requested at any time, and Kyuuzou would have accepted, and vice versa, but each of them seemed almost...reluctant. As if it were more interesting to talk about it rather than to actually duel. He frowned slightly again, feeling uneasy. This wasn't the same uneasiness he felt whenever there was something that was a physical threat to him around. This was a response to something else. He turned to face Kanbei again, feeling that something had changed. He could barely hear him breathing. He moved quickly over to him and knelt down next to him. It was time to change the bandages anyway, but...he did not know how to revive a man. He had never needed to. His mind turned over every memory, searching for anything that might help, as he released Kanbei's arm from the tourniquet, pleased that the bloodflow had stopped. He was able to re-bandage it with simply more strips of cloth that were torn from his shirt, tying them tightly onto Kanbei's arm. He looked at the pale, sleeping man, and felt that odd emotion worm its way into his chest again, and before he could stop his hand, it had brushed away some of Kanbei's hair from his face. He was startled with himself, for showing such a sign of caring and...almost... affection...for another. He clamped down on his emotions again, sending that odd feeling back into the depths of his being where it belonged. He watched over Kanbei the entire night, changing bandages when necessary, making sure that Kanbei was kept warm and as comfortable as possible. He didn't notice his own discomfort as he sat with his swords on his lap, his chest eventually entirely bare from the creation of makeshift bandages, nor did he notice the passage of time. The only moments when he was conscious of this was when Kanbei would wake up for enough intervals for Kyuuzou to force some water down his throat, trying to quell the fever that results from losing too much blood, the body trying to compensate for the warmth lost. He sat, stood, keeping himself awake, and waited for when Kanbei would awaken.


	2. Returning

The sun finally rose enough for Kanbei to entirely wake up, and he managed to stifle a groan as he felt his arm throb in pain. He turned his head, and was startled that his clothes felt heavier than usual, and it took him a moment to discern why from the haze of pain. The clothes smelled different, but who else...?

Kyuuzou?

Impossible.

He looked over towards where he heard the sound of the river and saw Kyuuzou over there, getting a drink. It took Kanbei a long moment to process what he was seeing.

Why was Kyuuzou naked from the waist up? What happened to his shirt and coat? He felt pressure around his arm and tried to move it, but before he could, he heard a voice say,

"Don't be stupid. Don't move your arm."

Irked by that, but understanding the prudence of that remark, he relaxed his arm, and turned his head back to look up at the tree above him.

"It's good you're awake."

"Why did you take care of me?"

"You can't die."

"Our duel..." Kanbei said with a note of wry amusement and slight exasperation at himself for thinking that Kyuuzou would do anything for other than purely selfish reasons. He did the same thing, after all.

"We're going back to the village."

Being an invalid and not stupid enough to provoke Kyuuzou, he stood up shakily on his own, using his sheathed sword to prop himself up. Undignified, yes, but neccesary. As he stood, he felt the extra weight fall from him, and looked down.

'So that's where his coat was...' he thought idly. He watched as Kyuuzou picked it up and nonchalantly threw it on himself again with a fluid gesture that Kanbei was temporarily envious of. He knew he wouldn't be able to move that way for a while.

"Can you walk?"

"Yes."

"Good."

Kyuuzou turned and started walking, albeit a little more slowly than usual, but far enough in front to keep alert without having to worry about being distracted by Kanbei. Every now and then he would stop, and wait for a laboring Kanbei to catch up, carefully alert as he watched the wounded de facto leader of their group approach. The two eventually made it out into a clearing, where they found a few abandoned houses from when the village had moved entirely into the main complex.

"You will rest here."

Kanbei nodded, not knowing just how tired his eyes were as he sat down on the floor of the house. He didn't realize he had fallen asleep until he felt someone pick up his arm. He groggily opened one eye and saw an intent Kyuuzou unwrapping his wounded arm and frowning at its state. Kyuuzou left again, briefly, coming back with some wood. He made a fire and took a needle from a pocket of his jacket, and heated it up.

"This will hurt," he told Kanbei as he cauterized the wound.

Kanbei grimaced, his right hand curling into a fist so tightly that his nails punctured the skin.

Kyuuzou drew away after what seemed like an eternity and looked over his handiwork, pleased. he used some cloth he had found in the house and bandaged the wound, ignoring how Kanbei was looking at him, already past the pain.

He stood, his coat swooshing out around him, and he looked at Kanbei, waiting.

"The village is not much farther."

To his surprise as well as Kanbei's, he offered his hand to help Kanbei up. Kanbei stood on his own, ignoring the help, and Kyuuzou turned,letting his hand fall as he stepped out into the sunlight. Kanbei heard the sound of Kyuuzou's swords being drawn and grabbed his sword, and exited the house. Kanbei heard the whir of mechanics laid open, and smelled the grease that leaked from the wounds of the Nobuseri. Kanbei exited, and watched the battle unfold with a strategists eyes. Kyuuzou was doing admirably for a man who had not slept in more than 24 hours, defending himself and defeating his opponents with the lightning quickness that made Kanbei itch to try his luck at challenging him again. He had not met a warrior worthy of his skills before he met Kyuuzou. It took all of a few moments to defeat his assailants, leaving none left alive. Kyuuzou turned to Kanbei, his eyes not condemning, but with a hint of concern beneath the cold, distant emptiness that usually filled them.

"Come."

He turned towards the village again and Kanbei followed, unhappy to be reliant on anyone else for help. But he knew that his left arm would be useless until it mended. He hated helplessness as much as the next samurai, if not more. He saw Kyuuzou stop only a short distance away from the village, and became wary; however, he felt, heard, saw, smelt nothing. There was just him and Kyuuzou, and the village only a short ways off.

"It seems as if our duel will have to wait."

Kanbei gave a small,wry smile as he stood next to Kyuuzou.

"Unfortunately."

There was a long, surprisingly awkward silence between the two.

"Thank you," Kanbei said after struggling with his warrior's pride.

Kyuuzou just looked at him, but Kanbei thought he saw a "you're welcome" in Kyuuzou's usually expressionless eyes. Kanbei took a step towards the village but was stopped by Kyuuzou catching his good arm.

He looked back, mildly interested, but was not ready for the question he saw in Kyuuzou's eyes, a question Kyuuzou didn't even know he was asking. Kyuuzou released Kanbei's arm, not understanding why he had done that and then walked past Kanbei.

"They will be relieved to see you."

Kanbei was surprised for the first time in a long time. He had been pursued, wanted, before, but this...this was different. This was beyond the simple desire to be the better warrior, though it had started that way. How did it manage to develop into something so completely different?

He shrugged and put the question to the back of his mind to ponder at a later date, when his body didn't hurt so much and when he had time to talk to Kyuuzou...if Kyuuzou would even answer the questions he had to ask him. He followed Kyuuzou, becoming more weary with each step, back into the main village.


	3. Battles

Kyuuzou had been right; everyone WAS happy to see Kanbei. Kyuuzou was given nothing but a cursory glance, a murmur of thanks for bringing Kanbei back, but no concern over his own well-being. Kyuuzou was used to such treatment, it didn't bother him. He left Kanbei and the group as soon as he could and went to the cliff overlooking the sharp drop that the waterfall fell down. He stared into nothing and thought, allowing the insane amount of questions he had pent up to finally surface. So many 'why's?' and not enough explanations. He sat down, swords leaning against his shoulder, and he winced as he sat. He looked down at his torso and stared. When had the wound happened? He played with the cut in his cloak, trying to remember when that could have possibly happened. He was better than that, to get wounded by such a small party of enemies. He stood quickly, hearing something more than the roar of the waterfall,a roar within the roar. Four Red Spiders jumped up at him and he unsheathed his swords. He was a little slower than usual, though, and found himself breathing hard as he fought off a growing number of enemies. Only the thought that there was a wounded Kanbei back in the village kept him going to the point of exhaustion, the last enemy falling to his swords before he too dropped unconscious, bleeding from a multitude of small wounds, swords covered thickly in blood and oil.

Kanbei woke from dozing with a start, nerves wound tightly. He heard the startled shouts of the villagers and stood up, grabbing his sword with his good hand. He exited the building and grimaced. When would the Nobuseri give up! He watched his comrades fight, before awkwardly unsheathing his sword. It did not take long to dispatch them, shorter than usual. When the fighting died down, he looked around, surveying damage to both people and buildings. He saw Gorobei, Heihachi, Katsushiro, Kikuchyo, Shichijirou, himself...but no Kyuuzou. He frowned. That wasn't like Kyuuzou. The others noticed the lack of the silent blonde, and Katsushiro became concerned.

"Where's Kyuuzou-dono?"

Rashly, and expectedly, he took off, at least intelligently following the trail of the dead Nobuseri. Shichijirou followed him with his eyes and wryly shook his head.

"Ah, the impulsiveness of youth. Were we ever that way, Kanbei?"

"I think you were."

Shichijirou twitched and sighed. "Sheesh. Thanks for the support."

Kanbei gave his old friend a faint smile, and saw Katsushiro return, his face dark with concern.

"I can't find Kyuuzou anywhere!"

Kanbei felt a funny sensation in his chest, and so picked up the sheathe for his sword and with some difficulty put the sword back in.

"We must find him. He's too good a warrior to lose."

Shichijirou watched his old wartime friend hobble along, sending the others to spread out looking, and sighed heavily. "Even if he's blind to it, I can see it. What exactly HAPPENED out there...?"

Kyuuzou awoke slowly, and coughed as he sat up, his clothes tearing the scabs from his skin as he moved. He looked around and was unhappy with what he saw. Around him a multitude of footsoldiers stood, all pointing guns at him.

It appeared they had decided he was a larger threat than Kanbei.

Once he was a a sitting position, he looked around for his swords without appearing too--and cursed inwardly. His swords had been taken by them. He slowly stood, and all the guns moved in unison with the motion.

A Nobuseri, their leader, he inferred, approached him, jets humming,exhaust making the air stink.

"You are Kyuuzou."

Only frigid silence met his statement.

"Answer!"

Kyuuzou remained still, his eyes perfectly calm as he looked at the Nobuseri, which infuriated the mechanical soldier even more.

"Then d--"

The command was cut short as it was sliced in half. Kyuuzou moved, knocking the feet out of one of the soldiers, using the body as a shield as he ran for his swords. He slid behind the soldier holding them, letting him get riddled with bullets as he tore his swords away. He then proceeded to hack his way through the ranks, striving to break the circle. He was pushing his body to the limit, which admittedly wasn't entirely intelligent, but he needed to get away, and attacking and killing was the only option that came to his mind as an immediate and quick way of getting out of the situation. He heard the muffled cries as other footsoldiers were being killed by someone other than himself and he idly wondered who. He broke the circle with a lunge at the two soldiers standing in his way, and turned to face the carnage he had wrought.

Not bad, for being injured.

He saw the other, growing trail of blood, and once the Nobuseri were sufficiently whittled down to warrant a retreat, he was able to see who was the other who had fought with him, for him.

He was not surprised.

He walked towards Kanbei, and snarled inwardly.

"You shouldn't be fighting," he said in his usual calm, controlled voice.

"Neither should you from how you look."

They stood a sword's length apart, each tired, each bloody, each wounded,each silent.

"There they are!"

Kyuuzou turned to see Kikuchyo and Katsushiro running to meet them, and he sighed inwardly. More often than not, they both grated against his nerves. But he treated them like he did everyone else; with a cool detachment that left them wondering what he was thinking.

"Kanbei-sama! Kyuuzou-dono! You're both hurt..."

"I'm fine."

Katsushiro balked at how cool Kyuuzou's voice was, denying any help from them. He sheathed his swords after flicking off the blood, and walked towards the village, desperately wanting a new shirt and to clean his wounds. Katsushiro moved from his path, wondering at how he could take such painful-looking wounds so stoicly.

Kyuuzou went directly to where the villages kept all their medicinal supplies and looked around until he found what he need, pointedly ignoring the attempts at help from the villagers. When he took off his coat, the villagers drew in a collective breath of sympathy. His torso and arms were littered with cuts, some bleeding sluggishly from being reopened by activity, others barely scabbed over, some new. He sat down and began to bandage himself, once again ignoring the villagers. He had his body taken care of in a relatively short amount of time, and stood when finished. He caught the eyes of one of the farmers, who shuddered under his gaze.

"Where do you keep spare clothing."

"We don't have much..."

"Show me."

The farmer led Kyuuzou to a small shed, and let Kyuuzou in. He looked around, hands running over the fabrics until a shirt caught his eye. It wasn't exactly what he needed, but it was black and relatively skin tight, so it would do. He pulled it on and walked outside into the sunlight, eyes narrowing as his sight adjusted. Hopefully this weather would hold. It would give him time to heal, since he would be able to sense long in advance any Nobuseri approaching the village, while also giving Kanbei time to heal.

Again!

Why Kanbei _again_?

This was more than just the desire to see him well so he could beat him. This was...that...feeling...again. That uncomfortable sensation that he wanted to shove into the deepest, darkest regions of his being and forget about. But it would not be forgotten. He didn't know that his eyes were snapping in anger as he retrieved his coat and looked it over. It wasn't damaged too badly, nothing that he couldn't fix. He slung it over his forearm, and disappeared into the woods, swords in his other hand.

Kyuuzou found a nice, large tree to rest against and threaded some of the string he had found in the shed through a needle--the same one he had used on Kanbei. He began to fix his coat, and tried to clear his mind of the clutter of emotions that had been clouding it. A warrior could not fight effectively with a troubled mind.

He let himself fall into something almost akin to a trance and finished his work on his coat in record time. Satisfied, he put the coat back on,and feeling whole again, walked back to the village, swords slung on his back.


	4. Answered Questions

A few days passed. Kyuuzou continued to train the farmers in archery, Kanbei oversaw the whole insanity, Heihachi creating technical marvels, Katsushiro on look out, Gorobei out helping to train the farmers in other defensive arts, and Kikuchyo...who cared where the mechanical mayhem was. Kyuuzou watched, without appearing to, Kanbei's healing process; as for himself, he always recovered quickly from any wound, no matter how serious.

He heard the attack coming long before he could see anything and set everything into motion, letting the farmers and Kanbei take over from there. He had no need to aid what they were training them to do. The Nobuseri arrived--and the farmers set to work. He waited, and watched, until they started to run out of arrows and courage. Then he jumped into the fray, efficiently finishing off any opponent to pass within reach of his swords. The battle ended more quickly than he thought it would, and he was able to stop after barely exerting himself. He sheathed his swords and turned to find his way back to the village, having been separated from everyone else. As he walked, he dropped into a defensive stance, having heard someone. When Kanbei appeared, a wry smile faintly on his lips, Kyuuzou put his swords away, hiding his irritation.

"The farmers did well, don't you think?"

"Yes."

A silence fell between them,a waiting silence that made Kyuuzou uneasy. He started to walk past Kanbei.

This time, Kanbei grabbed Kyuuzou's arm,and Kyuuzou looked back, hiding his confusion and annoyance.

"I never answered your question from earlier."

Kyuuzou frowned almost imperceptibly. What question?

He started to turn, but was stopped by Kanbei bringing Kyuuzou roughly to him and kissing him, startling Kyuuzou for the first time in a long time. When Kanbei drew away, he was pleased by how he had caught Kyuuzou off guard. He backed away from the still-recovering warrior and began to walk away, but suddenly found himself pushed roughly against a tree, the kiss a challenge, and a sort of claim. Kyuuzou drew away, a soft, malign smile on his lips. "It appears that we have another duel to settle."

Kanbei replied with a similar smile and the two walked back to the village, a new understanding and quieter challenge between them.

Shichijirou noticed the moment that the two men came back into the village. He knew that no one else could read Kanbei well enough to notice the subtle change in how he acted towards Kyuuzou, wouldn't notice the difference in posture, the slight inflection in Kanbei's eyes that showed that he was pursuing the other...and that Kyuuzou was apparently returning the favor. He sighed dramatically and leaned against a nearby wall. He remembered that experience. Granted, they had both been much younger...but that was irrelevant. He was glad that Kanbei would have another chance at happiness, he deserved it. He had found his, after all. This would also be fun to watch, since both of them were so awkward and withdrawn with how they felt. Especially Kyuuzou. Perhaps he would get better at reading the silent blonde. He walked over to Kanbei and placed a hand on his shoulder, making Kanbei look back...and Kanbei became immediately distrustful of the look in Shichijirou's eyes.

"I don't think he'll be as gentle as I was. You'll have your hands full."

Kanbei gave him a hard look, then sighed and gave a slight, wry smile.

"Of course you would have noticed."

"When I have spent as much time with you as I have, I would hope I'd be able to read you easily. No one else can, so I feel it's a worth while skill."

Kanbei shook his head and said dryly, "I know you're going to enjoy this far too much."

"Grant an old man some amusement."

"You're not that old."

"Neither are you. Especially if you're pursuing a younger man."

Kanbei twitched slightly and brushed Shichijirou's hand off his shoulder. Shichijirou laughed and grinned. "Relax. I won't say anything. I'll just quietly watch and laugh where you can't hear me."

Kanbei gave his old friend a half-hearted glare, even though he was straining to keep a smile from his face. "Very well. Remember that."

"I will, I will. Now, we have to clean up this village. They did well, but there's still some damage."

Kanbei nodded and immediately fell into the leader-role he was so used to, walking off with his usual calm, controlled air.

Only Shichijirou saw Kyuuzou watch Kanbei walk away.


	5. Captured

Kyuuzou was sitting in a tree, looking around. It was his turn to scout, even though he felt no need to be doing so. Kanbei and he, not to mention Gorobei and Shichijirou and Heihachi, would notice the presence of Nobuseri long before they would be able to confirm them with sight. He tensed and threw himself out of the way of a few darts and fell onto two footsoldiers, alarmed. How could he not have sensed them? He began fighting, enjoying the sensation of losing himself in the battle.

There seemed to be no end to them,and they were too far from the village for any help to arrive. as the onslaught continued, Kyuuzou found himself tiring, drenched in sweat, his movements a little slower than he would have liked. Inwardly he snarled curses as a bunch of the footsoldiers ran at him from all sides, simply jumping over their dead comrade's bodies. He found himself falling back under the pressure from all sides and winced as a large number of bodies fell on him from above, blocking out his vision, even as he swung his swords up to create a bloody rain. He only felt the needle prick for a moment before his body started to disobey him, his limbs growing heavy and tired. His vision blurred and his lips curled back in a snarl even as he fell to his knees,continuing to swing his swords out of desperation to kill a few more before he lost consciousness. His vision darkened and he felt his swords fall out of his hands, landing on the ground at the same time he did. He struggled for a few more seconds to retain lucidity, but eventually submitted to the potent drug that had been in the needle. The footsoldiers picked up the limp body, leaving as fast as they could before the farmers or samurai noticed. One stopped and looked at Kyuuzou's swords, and then took them with him. It would make them think he left on his own, rather than having been taken. He, unlike most of his comrades, did have a shred of common sense. He followed behind the rest, disappearing into the ever-present fog created by the nearby waterfall,swords shining within his metallic arms.

Kyuuzou awoke slowly at first, before returning to consciousness painfully quickly, taking a first cursory glance at his surroundings. He tried to move and found that his hands were bound behind him with cuffs and attached by a chain to the wall. He was disarmed. There was an overwhelming smell of oil, grease, metal, and exhaust; all things which he associated with the Nobuseri. What in the world would the Nobuseri want with him though? As he thought on this for a little, the door to his cell opened and he closed his eyes quickly so as to not be blinded. He opened them again and stood, trying to discern the person responsible for the silhouette.

"Bring him."

The two guards came in and unchained him from the wall. In that brief moment of slack, Kyuuzou ripped the chain out of the guard's hands and snapped the neck of one of the guards with the chain before whipping the other guard on the head hard enough to smash his skull in. He turned towards the door, having seen no other way out, and charged. He was brought up short by a sword pointed at his throat. Chain still in hand he wrapped it around the sword and yanked it out of the owner's hands, giving it to himself.

'Why am I here?' his eyes asked bluntly, the position of the sword now reversed, pointed at the heart of whomever stood in the doorway. When he was given no answer, Kyuuzou simply killed the person and brought him inside, closing the door partway, not enough so that he was locked in, but far enough that he would be able to escape easily. He searched the dead man for any clues of where he might be, but found nothing of use. He slipped out of the cell, unhappy to see that he no longer had his coat, but accepting the fact that black was easier to hide in than red. He slipped in and out of the shadows, getting a feel for where he was. Everywhere there was the clang of machinery, making his head hurt from the constant noise. He looked at the naked sword in his hand and wondered how he could hide its sheen from searching eyes, but was interrupted by footsteps. He quickly fled into a place where he would not be found by any normal person and listened.

"...he will make a fine specimen."

"I do not know...he was not easy to catch, and he will not be easy to convert. I believe you are risking too much."

"But imagine! We will have the perfect soldier."

"At what cost?"

"Who cares about the cost when the benefit is so much greater?"

Kyuuzou's nerves buzzed and he diverted most of his attention to the conversation, getting a bad feeling. The voices continued with idle talk about specifics that he was unable to understand when an underling came running up to the pair of men.

"He's escaped!"

"What!"

"The two guards that were outside his door are dead and the chain that had bound him was lying on the floor next to the footsolider that was to bring him to you."

"He's already recovered from the drug..." the more cautious man murmured.

"Find him! Find him at once!"

"Yes, m'Lord."

The underling ran off, and the one he had addressed in an honorific became nervous. "You said that the drug would keep a normal human passive for two days!"

"Apparently he is not a normal human."

Kyuuzou could have told them that.

"He _must_ be found. I will not have wasted all that I have gone through to capture him!"

The two left,the one of higher station in a hurry,the other at a more leisurely pace. Kyuuzou stayed where he was for a while, watching the frantic activity beneath him. How would he get out of here when it seemed as if the entire factory was after him? He swung down into another group of shadows and slinked along the walls, his fleeing form being ignored as a simple moving shadow of the soldiers as they scoured the area.

'Amateurs' he thought in disgust. He reached an open space and balked, hiding deeper into the shadows.

He was in a plant where they made Nobuseri.

Kyuuzou looked around for an escape route. The only one was entirely across the room, without any places to hide. He would have to make a mad dash.

Then again, what would he meet once he escaped? He had no idea where he was geographically, either. he could escape into a sandstorm, a blizzard, find himself floating on an island in the middle of an expanse of water that he could not see the end of.

But what was the other option? Become a Nobuseri? _Never_.

He would only have once chance. It was a chance he was willing to take, though. He took a deep breathe, trusted in his training, and lunged out from the shadows, sprinting across the room, sword in hand. His unidentified form raced across, catching the attention of the soldiers who were looking for him. He heard their shouts, but kept on sprinting. almost there!

The exhaustion then hit him like a hammer, and he stumbled along the way. No! So close! He kept on pushing himself, but found that he had lost too much speed. The soldiers were gaining, and he had a feeling that once close enough all would be for naught. Sweat poured down him and his hand reached out for the latch that would open the door when his legs gave out from under him, his fingers lightly brushing the latch.

'NO!' his mind screamed even as the soldiers arrived to stand over him, his form prostrate beneath them. His body gave a convulsive shudder, and he remembered what the one of them men had said about a drug. Perhaps it was time-released...

His last conscious thought was one of anger as he fell into a dark well of drugged sleep again.

He was woken by a jolt of energy that raced throughout his body, tugging on the most inner part of him, trying to draw it out.

His mind screamed and he held onto his spirit, digging in against the current that was trying ceaselessly to deprive him forcefully of anything. He distantly heard himself snarl in rage, but what his physical body was doing was of no consequence. If he lost this inner battle, he would never forgive himself. A thought of Kanbei flashed in his mind and strengthened his resolve. They had two duels to settle. he would never back out on a promise he had made. He felt the tide of energy grow weaker around him, yet he did not allow himself to relax. He would hold onto everything that was his until his death. He would never give up anything by force.

Take Kawamoto was impressed in spite of himself. Before him was truly a worthy warrior! No matter how much energy he poured into the process of creating a new Nobuseri from him, Kyuuzou resisted. Eventually Take stopped, not wanting to waste the precious power that the batteries provided. The man before him slumped in exhaustion, his eyes tired, yet full of a determination that Take envied. Slowly, slowly, Kyuuzou's eyes closed, his body and mind pushed beyond their tolerance. A new idea came to him, and he nodded. That would do. That would do quite nicely.

Kyuuzou once again found himself in new surroundings and cursed whatever drug they had put into his system. He moved his arm to wipe away the sweat on his forehead...and felt something other than his arm move. He looked over, concerned, and found that there was a myriad of wires slinking out of his arm, connecting him to something. He turned,and felt the same wires in his neck, and found them on his other arm as well. He could not see his legs, for they were wrapped in a fabric of a skin-tight weave, but he could feel the same pulsation of the energy that was transferred through the wires down where he assumed his legs were. He was still clothed in black, but more form fitting than anything he would ever consider wearing. He looked around and saw nothing but darkness. suddenly, a voice filled his consciousness, echoing somewhere between his ears.

'You're awake, I see.'

'Who are you?' he asked, his voice frigid. A jolt of electricity ran through him, making him glare at the emptiness.

'Now, now. It's not nice to speak that way to your master.'

'I have no master.'

'You do now.'

'I will not serve you!'

'Then i will make you.'

Within a heartbeat, Kyuuzou's mind was flooded with endless possibilities, evil begetting evil, and he was powerless to do anything to stop the slow downward spiral of seeing his comrades picked off, one by one. But the thing that made him want to scream, want to tear himself from whatever prison he was in, were the images of Kanbei being disgraced, then killed.

Take noted this fact with amusement, and slowly began to tailor the mental torture meant to break Kyuuzou to provoke him to despair, to surrender, by feeding him a never ending stream of endless disgrace.


	6. Fading

He never screamed. He wanted to, many times, but he never screamed. He numbed himself to the images, drew within himself, hardened himself within a cage of ice. Slowly, he lost his sense of who he was, of who he had been, of the man named Kyuuzou. In its place, a cold, cold anger crystallized, building off the hate and pain that were an ever constant part of his existence. Slowly, slowly, a part of him died, and the last flicker of memory that was left of he who had been Kyuuzou faded was of a feather earring blowing in the wind, and sad brown eyes.


	7. Escape

Take was startled by the change when he next observed Kyuuzou. There was no reaction, no matter how horrendous the images were, not even a flicker of interest. Since this was so, Take stopped the stream, and only felt a slight relaxation, a glimmer of a sigh that bespoke something along the lines of, 'Finally.' He contacted Kyuuzou again, asking in an authoritative and nonchalant voice,

'Are you ready to serve me now?'

'Why should I?'

Take balked,and felt a slight wave of amusement radiate from the Nobuseri shell that contained Kyuuzou. The voice was cold, calm, and distant. It was not the voice of a desperate man, broken, ready to surrender. This was the voice of a man who had lost all hope, and so had found other emotions to occupy the space where it had been.

'Because I created you as you are, and all your power, and all that you are, belong to me.'

There was a mild pause, as if Kyuuzou turned his words over.

'Not good enough.'

The mecha that Kyuuzou was inside broke free of the chains that had bound it, and picked up two swords, one that it sheathed on its back and the other to one side.

'I don't know if I should thank you or curse you. Until I figure that out, you will live.'

The mecha ran and jumped out into the air, turning on its engines in time to buoy it up into the high atmosphere, catching a thermal and disappearing into the sun. Take watched it go with a sinking feeling.

"I have no idea what he's capable of. He's an amazing warrior in the flesh, so what will he be like now?"

He cruised on the wind currents, adjusting himself to how a mecha viewed the world; it was not hard to do. It was free of any excess information, only presenting the facts of what was around it. It fed directly into his mind, so it was easy to process. There was no thought, no feeling in his mind except for one:

The Nobuseri must die.

He flew along, and caught the channels of communication between the Nobuseri, and monitored them silently, listening for coordinates, and planning murder. He located where the closest group of Nobuseri were, and putting his engines on silent, flew into the clouds, becoming a shadow within. He hovered quietly above the group of Nobuseri, waiting patiently. Slowly, without making a sound, he drew his swords, and held them lightly, easily in his hands. As the Nobuseri passed beneath him, he turned off his engines and fell onto them, cutting the two below him neatly in half, then landing on the ground and turning sharply, vaulting himself back up towards the rest of them. Startled, it took the Nobuseri one moment too long to attempt to defend themselves, and within a few minutes, a group of twenty had been decimated by one. He landed among the wreckage, yet felt that the cold hatred within him had barely been satiated. As long as there were Nobuseri, he would continue to murder them all without mercy, and so decide whether or not to kill the man who made him into this half-machine.


	8. Reports

Strange reports had been filtering in to Kanna from various other villages, each puzzling, but all coinciding. Sometimes the villages were being attacked, other times the Nobuseri were collecting their payment; either way, it didn't matter. A different kind of Nobuseri would drop from the sky and begin to fight, then kill,those it was supposed to be working with. The whole process lasted anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, but either way, the entranced villagers would watch from their shelters, amazed. The new one was faster than any previous Nobuseri, its build seeming to emphasize speed more the strength, which seemed to make it more deadly. It never spoke, but radiated a cold, deep hatred that made the villager's blood run sluggishly. No matter how long the battle took, the new Nobuseri would never retreat, and never surrendered, keeping on until all the Nobuseri were dead. It would leave as silently as it came, having never replied to insults, pleads, or challenges.

Kanbei and the others were concerned. While this Nobuseri seemed to take orders from no one, that didn't mean that he wouldn't attack them. Actually, Kanbei was sure that one day he would be able to see this mysterious new machine, since the Nobuseri attacked them fairly often.

He did not have to wait long.

The day after hearing the strange report, Nobuseri arrived again, large ones as well as footsoldiers and Red Spiders. Kanbei waited and watched, but it appeared that the Nobuseri were guarding against any type of aerial attack. He became absorbed in the battle, using his left arm again, finally, after a month of forced inactivity. Suddenly, a new presence dawned on him and he turned sharply around. Surely enough, there was the new model, extracting its sword from on the the large Nobuseri. Kanbei called the others off from attacking the large Nobuseri, focusing on the smaller, quicker ones and footsoldiers that could do as much damage with guns and bombs as the Nobuseri could. Once their battle was over, he turned to watch the new model face off against the 5 older ones, waiting for the outcome. Since the older models focused on strength, two went down immediately to the superior speed of the new one. He understood what the reports had meant by the feeling of cold, cold, hatred; he could feel it too. The new model lacked any sense of feeling, its being entirely consumed by hatred and a deep river of anger and resentment. At least with the older Nobuseri, there was a sense that the thing encased in metal had once been human. With this one...there was nothing. Just an endless well of cold. The battle was over in less than ten minutes, and all throughout, there was an itching sense of recognition of the style of the new model. Kanbei had _seen_ it somewhere before. But where? He did not remember any Nobuseri using it before, so that could not be where he remembered it from. The new model stood and turned, extracting one of its two swords from the now empty husk of metal that had once been a Nobuseri. Its eyes swept over all the villagers, encompassing the samurai in that baleful glance that sent shivers down even Kanbei's spine. Still, there was that uncanny feeling of recognition, and Kanbei felt uneasy as it took off, apparently having found nothing of worth to it. What was wrong with him? He should be able to tell. All eyes followed the new model as it disappeared into the horizon, most wary, some confused, and one sad. Shichijirou looked over at their leader, whom he could tell was wrestling with trying to place the presence he had felt. He was able to tell exactly why the presence, why the style was so familiar to everyone else. He would not tell them, though. It was, perhaps, the better alternative.

'Ignorance is bliss, so they say,' Shichijirou thought, as he said aloud, "We should get to cleaning everything up. I don't believe that there will be any other attacks soon, but we should try to salvage everything to prepare for when the attack does come again."

Kanbei nodded, and his authority and respect added to the common sense of Shichijirou's order made both villagers and other samurai start to work. Shichijirou watched Kanbei merge into the flow of things, and sighed dramatically.

'I can't wait until he finally puts two and two together.'

He found a secluded cave and shut down the robotics, only his organic heart remaining awake. He listened to the silence, feeling the beating of his heart in his ears, his breath coming less in gasps and more evenly. He turned on the radio channel that would allow him to hear the conversations of the Nobuseri, but let no one else realize he was listening, and closed his eyes.

When he had seen the samurai in that village, he had felt that at one point he had known them. He even remembered names: Kikuchyo, Katsushiro, Gorobei, Heihachi, Shichijirou, and...

In his mind, he knew that he had felt for them, had considered them comrades, even if he did not always get along with them. But as he examined each image, felt each presence again, no feelings were conjured, just memories. He searched for the reason, and was not surprised to feel that the only emotions left to him were anger and hatred, both directed squarely at the Nobuseri. He felt that he probably had lost something, but since he did not feel the loss, he could not say what exactly was missing.

He slept, a deep, dreamless sleep, full of the buzz of the radio, bits of information being fed directly into his mind. A new message, apparently important since it was over more encoded line, crossed his mind and he became aware, and listened carefully. As he listened to the message, and read between the lines, a growing sense of cold satisfaction blossomed in his chest. He would have the Nobuseri in one place, at one time, and a chance to kill them all, he found his mouth instead curving into a malign smirk. Once he had committed the message to memory, he turned on the armor shell and blasted out of the cave he had been hiding in, startling wildlife. He gained his bearings and turned towards the coordinates he had discovered within the false ones, speeding along quickly. He withdrew into the emptiness inside him again, preparing himself for the battle that would most likely lead to his death.


	9. Discovery

Kanbei, Shichijirou, and Heihachi were walking, skirting the desert, trying to get a feel for what the Nobuseri were planning and where they were. Kikuchyo had said he had been picking up strange signals of late, so the three had gone out scouting to discover the reason. Heihachi yelped and dashed behind a rock, Shichijirou and Kanbei following, and not a moment too soon. Two Nobuseri flew over them, heading purposefully away from them. The three looked at each other and nodded. Together, they snuck down the hillside, and raced across the sand, ignoring fatigue, following the small specs of Nobuseri ahead of them. Winded, and after running for far too long, they hid within ruins of an old city, hiding in the hum and heat of hundreds of Nobuseri. They apparently were communicating over a direct link between all of them, and so the three men were unable to hear 90 of the conversation.

What they did hear, was enough.

This meeting was about the new model. They called it "rouge". They debated back and forth what to do about it, all participating but one, which was far back, in the outskirts. It also seemed a little uncomfortable, as if it had been newly made. When the debate was in full swing, though, the "new" Nobuseri jerked and out of the shell, the new model broke through, and skewered two Nobuseri on its swords before flicking them off into other Nobuseri. The three men watched the battle unfold with something akin to awe. For one of them to go against so many...it was suicide. It was honorable to want to die in battle, and it appeared that this Nobuseri knew this well. Once again, that itch of recognition found its way into Kanbei's mind. When there was a lull in the battle, the large amount of remaining Nobuseri and the new model facing each other, the new Nobuseri spoke for the first time,

"Kill me."

It wasn't a request, it was a demand, a challenge. But it was one that all the Nobuseri balked at.

Kanbei, Shichijirou, and Heihachi all shivered, feeling as if their blood nearly froze in their veins. While its presence spoke of having an emptiness so wide it was almost as if the machine was lifeless, the voice only confirmed it. Inside that mechanical shell, there was no one.

'But how can it still be moving? What is driving it?' Heihachi wondered to himself, and then turned to see the reaction of Shichijirou and Kanbei. He expected the reaction of Shichijirou--wariness and calculating--but he did not understand Kanbei's. His grip on his sword was white-knuckled, and there was no expression in his eyes. His body was vibrating, whether in fear, anger, or some other unidentifiable emotion, was up to interpretation. Heihachi had no idea what was going on in his leader's head, and after deciding that he didn't want to know, turned back to examine the battle and weigh the odds.

Kanbei was stunned. No wonder the style had been so familiar, the presence so recognizable. Why hadn't he seen it before? But...why?

What was Kyuuzou doing in the body of a Nobuseri?

Apparently, the Nobuseri that could have been Kyuuzou got tired of waiting, and so lunged at the others, breaking the tension, moving quickly from one opponent to the next. Sheer numbers, and anger at seeing their comrades killed, provoked the Nobuseri to retaliate strongly, pressing that which was and was not Kyuuzou into what would have been desperate measures, had the new model not responded so calmly, with such force. His hover jets were cut off and he fell to the ground heavily, but had kept his swords in hand the entire time, so was able to ward off the attack that followed, killing the one who had meant to destroy him. The Nobuseri circled him in the air, and became even more enraged by the blatant amusement that rolled off him.

'What, not strong enough to attack me? Giving up?'

This enraged to Nobuseri into all coming down on him at once, and while he dodged the majority of the attacks, first a leg, then an arm, then his head, and finally his torso were all cut off and he fell to the ground in pieces. The Nobuseri, satisfied at finally disposing the threat that had been shaming them, all left at once, going back to the tasks that they had originally been given, leaving the smoking heap on the ground.

Kanbei jumped out from behind the rocks where they had been hiding and ran over to the damaged shell, Shichijirou, then Heihachi, following. When Heihachi got in proximity, he frowned. Something was not right. This Nobuseri was not dead. Not yet. He climbed on top of the chest, and drew his sword, letting instinct guide him. He stopped over the center, and thrust his sword in, drawing it down the torso until he cut enough of a gash that the metal parted. He did the same on the width, creating a cross that eventually opened enough to see that which was inside. When he saw, he stared.

"I didn't know this was possible..." he murmured breathlessly.

Kanbei joined him up on the chest, and looked where he was looking, and had much the same reaction. He recovered more quickly, however, and then forced the metal plates open further, revealing the unconscious body of Kyuuzou.

Shichijirou and Heihachi couldn't stop staring.

The Kyuuzou that was reveled was nothing akin to the man that they had known. He was emaciated, the only part of him appearing real and substantial was his head. All over his body, wires hung limply, slowly detaching themselves from him, now that the Nobuseri shell was no longer functional. The three men watched in mild disgust as the wires fell off his body, sometimes in clumps, others one by one. When the last wire detached itself from Kyuuzou's temple, Kanbei reached down and picked him up.

'Too light...far too light.'

"We need to get him back to the village. He's been helping us, after all, keeping down the numbers of Nobuseri that can attack us."

Shichijirou nodded, and Heihachi stared for a moment longer before nodding a little more slowly. They all jumped down from the corpse of the Nobuseri, and Kanbei took off his overcoat and wrapped Kyuuzou in it. Heihachi was unable to understand the reason behind such an intimate gesture, but asked no questions. It would take the three men less than two days to return, but all of them wondered if Kyuuzou would even be able to survive the night.

He awoke slowly to brighter light than he had seen in a long time, even though he could tell he was in a cave. He slowly propped himself up and looked around, wary. Some way away from him, he heard three voices. Human voices. He stood slowly, then fell to one knee, grimacing. He heard one of the three stand up and they came over to him, looking down at him.

"You should rest a while longer. You're not in good shape."

'Shichijirou,' he identified the man in his mind.

"I'm fine."

He saw Shichijirou's grip tighten on his staff, and saw him swallow repeatedly.

"Do it, or else I'll get the sharp side of Kanbei's blade."

He remained kneeling, and Shichijirou gave him a frustrated glare. Reluctantly, he sat down, finding that his strength had diminished quickly.

"Thanks," Shichijirou said dryly.

He simply looked at him, not making eye contact, but still making Shichijirou nervous. He turned around and walked back to where he assumed the others were. Another man, whom he was unable to identify, came over to him, holding a mug.

"Drink this."

He found that he was ravenously hungry after smelling the mixture and took it, unhappy to find that his hands were shaking. He pressed the cup to his lips, and was shocked by the taste. How long had it been since he had eaten? He knew that he, at some point, would have drastically disapproved of the taste of the drink, but he found that he didn't mind much. Then again, he didn't mind much of anything these days.

Kanbei watched Kyuuzou drink it slowly, almost painfully. As he watched, Kanbei absently rubbed his hands together. When he had touched Kyuuzou's hands, it had felt as if he had touched the blade of his sword on a cold day in winter. There was no life in his flesh, no warmth. He finished the drink, and handed the cup back to Kanbei, and promptly fell asleep again. Kanbei returned to his companions and sat down heavily, handing the cup back to Shichijirou.

"It worked, apparently."

"He's asleep, then?"

"Yes."

Heihachi looked over at where Kyuuzou was sleeping and shifted uneasily.

"He is not the man he used to be. He feels...like a machine. But even machines are alive. He...doesn't feel that way."

"Maybe he'll be better once given time to recover?" Shichijirou offered, more to give a little glimmer of hope to Kanbei than anything else.

Heihachi shrugged."Perhaps."

'But I think that he's missing something. Something important, that made him who he was. I'll figure it out by the time we reach the village.'

Kanbei was still trying to warm his hands, as uneasy as Heihachi was, but showing it less.

"His skin felt cold through my gloves."

That statement gave the others food for thought, and none of them were truly able to explain why.


	10. Meetings

He was walking on his own half-way back to the village, after giving off silent disapproval at being carried until Shichijirou finally lost enough patience to let him walk on his own, albeit with a walking stick. He seemed much calmer after that.

Heihachi was constantly pondering why Kyuuzou would feel as different as he did after only a little more than a month and a half apart. People change, yes, but not so drastically.

'It feels as if he lost what makes him human. As if ...'

The significance of the thought made him stop dead in his tracks, falling behind the others.

"Impossible!" he murmured to himself before running to catch up with the others, doing his best to hide his unease from the others...but most of all from Kyuuzou.

The group returned to the village during the night of their second day of traveling, arriving a little later than planned simply because Kyuuzou was not in his usual shape, but was recovering fast...strangely fast on too little food. Kirara, Katsushiro, and Kikuchyo came out to meet them, glad to see Kanbei,Shichijirou, and Heihachi back. Katsushiro looked over into the darkness behind the other three and caught the eyes of whomever was standing with Kanbei's coat around his shoulders.

His breath caught in his throat and he felt as if he was falling, even though he was certain that he was braced against a wall and standing up. There was nothing in those eyes. No emotion, no light, only cold, and disinterest in what was happening, in how Katsushiro was reacting. He felt as if his body was slowly being turned to ice, but was unable to look away, for those eyes repelled him as they drew him in. The man eventually looked away, and Katsushiro felt as if he suddenly had a fever, all his warmth returning to him.

'Who _is_ that!' he thought, trying his best to recover from the shock. Gorobei came out of a nearby house and saw the youngest member of their group looking pale and shaken and looked where he was. In the shadows, there was a man standing, his body wrapped in Kanbei's cloak, a strong contrast to the feeling he was getting from him. He frowned and then the man looked his way, knowing he was being examined, watched, but did not make eye contact.

'Kyuuzou...' Gorobei thought to himself, but then revised the thought. It was Kyuuzou, but at the same time, it was not. There was something different, something almost...lifeless...about the warrior.

Kikuchyo realized the warrior was there after a long while.

"Kyuuzou!"

When Kyuuzou looked at him, though, Kikuchyo actively flinched and fell back a step or two. He then whipped out his sword, but Kanbei stepped in front of him, not permitting him to move any farther.

"Kanbei!"

"He is Kyuuzou. Trust my instincts."

Kyuuzou was amused by all the reactions of those who looked upon him, but didn't really care. It was unimportant. But when he had made eye contact with that boy, Katsushiro...he was for the first time truly conscious that he had lost something from the time before he had been imprisoned in the Nobuseri armor. He still couldn't name it, but he saw it in all the warriors around him, even the mechanical one, Kikuchyo. He had one. The thing he lacked. That made him mildly annoyed. It made them superior to him, to have something he lacked, and he would not tolerate it. He would find out what it was at the first opportunity he got. He watched the greetings, the reports, and then there came a silence that was expectant. He knew that he would have to introduce himself now. But as what? He walked over to where the rest of the group was, and stood next to Kanbei. He caught Kirara's eyes,and after seeing her fall, but unable to take her eyes off him, he could almost name what he was missing. He broke the eye contact and closed his eyes, withdrawing again into his cage of ice. When he opened his eyes again, they were cold, merciless, and once again full of a quiet hate. He would get better. He would achieve the same state of physical fitness he had been in before and then he would go and kill that son of a bitch.

"Who are you!" Kirara yelled at him, voice high-pitched in fear. "_What_ are you?"

Kyuuzou looked other evenly, catching her eyes again, making her body quiver.

"I am who I am," was his reply before he turned on his heel and brushed past Kanbei,who followed him with his eyes as he faded into the woods.

"He will not leave,"he said and Shichijirou nodded. Kanbei was right this time. All the villagers and samurai began to disperse from the scene, ill at ease. Heihachi stepped in front of Kanbei, his eyes serious.

"I need to talk to you. about Kyuuzou."

Heihachi was grave as he sat across from Kanbei, trying to find the right way to phrase what he needed to say.

"Something is wrong with Kyuuzou," he stated as he looked evenly at Kanbei.

"Yes?"

"You heard him, how he spoke...his voice it's...dead. There's no warmth in it. There wasn't much to begin with, but now..." Heihachi shook his head. "after you touched him, it seemed to take a long time to warm your hands again. Remind me why."

Kanbei remembered the sensation as he looked down at his hands. "He was cold, even through my gloves. It was as if I had touched my blade after having left it out in the winter air..." he trailed off, thinking.

"Did you see how Katsushiro, Kikuchyo and Kirara reacted when they caught his eyes? I want to find out _why_. There is something deeply, seriously wrong, Kanbei. We must be careful."

He shifted into his more easy-going demeanor, having finished bringing up what he wanted to, "Not like we weren't careful before."

He stood, and opened the door,and hesitated. "I'll leave you with something to think about, something I have decided upon, after pondering for a while. Kyuuzou, as he is now, is both more and less than a Nobuseri."

Heihachi closed the door behind him, leaving Kanbei alone in the room to puzzle over his words.

He stood where the waterfall was, letting it coat him in mist. He could almost name what he was missing. He was so close to understanding. He felt he should be alarmed by the lack of it, but the reality, the truth only made him want to crush the skull of the man who made him this way. After slowly drawing out his death of course. He heard someone approach from behind him and he whirled around, hands searching for blades that were not there.

"Saa,Saa, don't panic," said a chagrined, relaxed voice.

He watched as Heihachi came out of the forest, hands held up in surrender.

"Kyuuzou."

He tensed as the tone of Heihachi's voice changed. He looked Heihachi in the eyes, and was proud of the small warrior when he did not flinch. Instead, Heihachi's eyes became slightly sad, and he was able to look away on his own.

"I'm sorry, Kyuuzou. Tell me, who did this to you?"

His eyes closed, the face of he who made him less than he was burned in his mind, his voice forever imprinted there.

"I do not know his name. But I know where he is. And I will kill him."

Heihachi gave a wry smile and said, "You won't be able to beat him now. Get better first."

He felt Heihachi leave,and turned back to the waterfall.

He needed swords. Yesterday.


	11. Forgetting

Heihachi stared sleeplessly up at the ceiling, turning over what he had seen in Kyuuzou.

He had been right. He was both more and less than a Nobuseri. He closed his eyes and remembered how Kyuuzou's had appeared, how they had seemed to bore into his being, searching, grasping for that which Kyuuzou was lacking. Even if he did not consciously know it, he desired that which he had lost. Heihachi slowly thought out the possibilities, his scientific mind sifting through countless situations to come to a conclusion.

Kyuuzou could not stay this way.

If he did...

'Slowly,anything that is left of him will vanish. He will truly die, and we will never be able to revive the man he once was. As time passes, he will more and more see things in black and white, enemies that are to be slain, and friends that are to be protected. But how quickly that idea can change! One day he could be fighting for us, the next, against us.'

He resolved to tell Kanbei what he had meant by his statement, From there, the next course of action would be decided. He turned over onto his stomach, content with what he had decided,and promptly fell asleep.

After a week had passed, Kanbei had sought out the silent warrior.

He found him overlooking the chasm that separated the main complex of the village from the surrounding areas.

Kanbei stood next to him, wary in spite of himself. There was no longer any sense of that uneasy companionship,let alone the deep, subtle emotion that had connected them on a more intimate level. The two men stood in silence for a long time, before Kyuuzou asked a question that startled Kanbei:

"Who are you?"

That question asked in such a cold, only vaguely curious voice took a moment to process.

"my name is Shimada Kanbei."

There was no recognition, not even the mild disinterest that Kanbei had seen when Kyuuzou had met Heihachi and Shichijirou.

"Kanbei," he heard Kyuuzou say, as if turning the name over in his mind, trying to commit it to memory...and failing. Kanbei looked over at Kyuuzou and their eyes unwillingly met.

Kyuuzou took a step forward, seeing something in Kanbei, a burning recognition that caused a different emotion to melt through the ice.

Kanbei, at first, had seen the distant emptiness that frightened so many, but at the swift hunger and movement, Kanbei took a step back, one hand instinctively falling to the hilt of his sword.

Kanbei found himself asking the question that Kyuuzou had posed only a moment before:

"Who are you?"

All light fell out of the man's eyes, but he kept them trained on Kanbei's, searching. Kanbei saw, briefly, beneath all the cold anger, a glimpse of a pain that had buried beneath and lost within Kyuuzou's all-consuming hatred, anger, and distance.

"I don't know."

A silence fell between them as each looked away, Kanbei thinking, Kyuuzou withdrawing. Even as they reacted differently, they both wondered the same thing: what had they seen in the eyes of the other?

Kanbei turned, brushing past Kyuuzou as he returned to the village. A flash of memory passed lightly behind his eyes, but there was no hitch in his step, nor a sense of buried hopeful yearning.

He heard Kanbei leave, but kept on looking into the chasm before him, contemplating it and the conversation. He closed his eyes, trying to recall the man he had just spoken to.

There was no face. There was no voice. There was no name. All that was left were the words spoken. He opened his eyes again, and while he knew that the man he had just spoken to existed, and that he had interacted with him time to time, it appeared that something was preventing him from remembering.


	12. Resolution

Slowly, very slowly, Kyuuzou was, if not accepted, then at least warily trusted. He did what he believed needed doing, and didn't have much interaction with the villagers. He found that he hated the villagers, for they too had the thing he lacked. To be around so many people with it...was almost painful.

The day that Kyuuzou was finally, fully recovered, Heihachi approached Kanbei, after having put off their conversation for too long.

"Kanbei-sama?"

Kanbei turned away from what he was doing to look at the nervous red-head.

"Do you remember what I told you about Kyuuzou?"

"Yes."

"Have you figured out what I mean?"

"I have my theories."

"Well...let's find a less public place, so I can tell you what I meant."

"Nobuseri are machines, yes, but they were once people. Hence, they have humanity, even though they do not appear human. Kyuuzou...something must have happened, something must have gone wrong when they were trying to make him a Nobuseri. I believe...that, being stubborn, he resisted the original process. So they put him in the shell we found him in, and made him into a quasi-Nobuseri." He paused. "I don't know what happened in there, but it's the reason he is how he is now." Another pause. "Kanbei, Kyuuzou..."

Suddenly they heard a word snarled from behind them, and turned around in time to see the last flicker of Kyuuzou's coat. Kanbei had caught what had been said and stood up quickly.

"Nobuseri are nearby."

Heihachi watched Kanbei leave, and stood with a groan; he had been working too hard of late. He had missed his chance, yet again, to tell Kanbei what was wrong. He sighed, resigning himself to his bad luck, and then exited, going out to help.

Kyuuzou waited patiently until the first Nobuseri arrived. After that...it seemed as if there would be no stopping him until every attacking Nobuseri, no matter if they were large or simply a footsoldier, was dead. He attacked, and killed,the blades he had found a blur, his hate slowly growing.

Even the Nobuseri had it!

He cornered a footsolider,and pinned him to the ground and a tree after depriving him of weapons.

"Where is he."

The footsolider broke underneath his gaze and the sheer anger that was in his voice, telling him everything that he knew. As soon as the information was exhausted, he killed him.

He returned to the village, and immediately sought out Heihachi. Apparently he knew a little of what had happened to him. He found the mechanic helping repair some of the damage the Nobuseri had done on the machines he had created. He felt Kyuuzou's eyes on him, and jumped down, brushing himself off before approaching him.

"Yeah?"

"You know."

Heihachi immediately became serious.

"I do."

"Can you fix it?"

"I don't have the technology or the expertise to. You'd have to go to the guy who did that to you."

There was a long pause, Heihachi watching Kyuuzou, trying to detect any thoughts.

"I'm going."

"Not without me. I might be able to help with the more technological aspects."

Kyuuzou reluctantly nodded.

Heihachi managed to steel himself enough to place a hesitant hand on Kyuuzou's shoulder.

"Just wait a little...ne?"

Kyuuzou watched him walk away and found a nice tree to sit in and wait.

Heihachi tapped Kanbei on the shoulder, and Kanbei turned to face the easy-going samurai.

"Kyuuzou is going to go look for the guy who changed him. Just wanting to tell you that I'm off. I'm certain Shichijirou can handle the technical aspects."

"I'm coming with you, too."

Heihachi blinked repeatedly. "Why?"

"We'll leave as soon as I brief Shichijirou on why you, I, and Kyuuzou are leaving."

With that their leader walked away, leaving Heihachi very confused.

Shichiijrou listened patiently, then sighed.

"You really care for him, if you're willing to do this."

The silence on Kanbei's part was answer enough.

"Just don't get yourself killed or anything," he said as he rubbed his neck. "We're almost done with cleaning up around here, so I think that the people left behind here will have it easy for a while. You don't have to worry about us." Shichijirou gave Kanbei a half-smile. "I'll be busy enough worrying about you."

"I'll be seeing you, then."

Shichijirou watched Kanbei walk away and shrugged, before finding something for himself to do.


	13. Demands

Kyuuzou continuously walked forward, Heihachi having to physically stop him for them to rest. Heihachi was nervous around both of them, neither being particularly talkative. So,he filled the silence with relevant questions, drawing conversations out of a soon-understanding Kanbei. Kyuuzou, however, remained impassive, paying little to no attention to those around him, always looking in the direction they were headed.

Kanbei had been wondering something for a while. When Heihachi was blissfully asleep, Kyuuzou and Kanbei sat in silence, Kyuuzou sitting calmly, his swords resting against his shoulder, Kanbei watching him.

"You said you don't know who you are, yet you respond to Kyuuzou."

"..."

Kanbei was more than patient enough to wait him out, since they were resting and Kanbei would not leave Heihachi behind.

"Because that is what people call me."

"But you don't know if that's you real name?"

Another deep silence fell, and Kanbei thought as Kyuuzou avoided answering.

'Why would he not remember his own name? To have a name is to have a sense of self, of...'

"I don't," cut in Kyuuzou's soft answer, burning with concealed anger at the questions being asked.

Kanbei looked up at Kyuuzou, and saw again the searching in his eyes, even as the rest of him remained impassive and cold.

"What are you looking for?"

"..."

Kanbei was used to losing physical battles, but never battles for information.

"Something I lost."

Kanbei waited for an explination

Kyuuzou's answer as he stood and walked out of the cave they had been resting in caught Kanbei a little off-guard, but it all made sense, considering Heihachi's comments.

Heihachi's eyes were opened just a small bit, and he looked at the stone wall as he heard Kanbei try to find a comfortable way to sleep. He sighed inwardly, and closed his eyes again, apprehensive of what the next day would bring.

Kyuuzou started out the next day as soon as there was even a sliver of sun on the horizon. Kanbei had had uneasy sleep, so he was awake, and as soon as the two showed any signs of leaving without him, Heihachi was groggily on his feet, eating and walking simultaneously. The three all walked in silence; Kyuuzou, silent and focused; Kanbei, contemplative; and Heihachi, just plain tired. They moved quickly, the landscape changing from woodland to desert to mountains beneath their feet. To an exhausted Heihachi, it felt as if they were walking for years; in reality, it took them only a week to cover the distance.

Since that first night, Heihachi knew there had been more halting, convoluted conversations between Kanbei and Kyuuzou, but he didn't know their content, and, really, didn't want to.

Kyuuzou stopped completely, making Heihachi nearly walk into him. He was staring up the side of a mountain and Heihachi heard the sound of machines, and smelled smoke.

"Here?"

"Yes."

"How many entrances are there?" asked Kanbei.

Kyuuzou shrugged. "The front."

Heihachi looked at Kanbei, alarmed, hoping that he would have at least an idea; Heihachi had been inside such a factory before, but the exits and entrances were different for all of them.

They had no choice but to follow the silent warrior, who was entirely intent upon his task, and not on those who were with him. Kanbei followed, after a pause, and Heihachi did as well, not wanting to be caught alone and in the open.

Kyuuzou met no resistance when he opened the doors, for no one really came in the main entrance; most who went in were workers, who entered through back doors,or Nobuseri, who entered through various gates. He walked down the corridors, the anger that he had held in check now palpable even to those without a samurai's training. A few of the soldiers recognized him, barely, but balked at his presence, and then at the two apparently battle-worthy samurai that flanked him. His pace slowly picked up, but he stopped in front of the door that would lead him to the man that had been the focus of his hate for many days.

Slowly,with an assassin's soft touch, he opened the door.

The man's back was to him--very, very stupid layout. He made no sound as he walked, and the first time that Take was aware of Kyuuzou's presence was at the feel of razor-sharp steel resting lightly against his throat from behind. He tensed, but when he heard a voice purr in his ear, all the blood seemed to drain out of his body.

"Where is it?"

"I-I-I..." He took a large swallow; unwise against a steel blade, but managed to salvage some courage.

"Who are you?" He demanded.

"Funny you should ask that," he head another voice say from the door, a diminutive red-head and a hardened samurai blocking the only exit.

"He doesn't seem to know who he is."

The older man's voice was harsh and demanding, with undertones of possessiveness and protectiveness.

"Where is it?" that cold, cold, voice commanded of him. He felt the steel briefly removed, simply to whirl his chair around before he came into contact with eyes that made him want to pee himself.

'Poets and novelists speak of soulless eyes. Oh, they don't know the reality...'

He understood, finally, what he had created. And he didn't like it one bit.

'Give it back to me,' he heard that voice, it's hate multiplied tenfold, echo in his mind.

"I...I remember every Nobuseri I create! There are none that have _your soul_!"

"Then you will find it for him."

Take had not noticed when the older samurai had approached, but now faced with the ire of two very, very powerful samurai, he began to buckle under the pressure.

Meanwhile, while the two were focusing on getting information, Heihachi was happily exploring the machines that the office had control over. It took him as long to find the mechanism as it took for Kyuuzou and Kanbei to break any resistance by Take.

Heihachi smiled pleasantly at the shivering, snivelling man, who was not comforted by Heihachi's attempt at assuaging his fear. With Take in the lead, the three made their way to a chamber that Kyuuzou remembered well, but with no fondness.


	14. Conclusion

Kanbei watched Heihachi as the mechanic fiddled with the controls, keeping one eye on Take as he shivered in a nearby chair.

"Don't worry," Heihachi assured the silent leader. "No problems. I can work this, but I don't know how successful it will be. After all, it does tend to hurt more to put things in rather than taking them out."

Kanbei wondered, briefly, if there was any hidden meaning in his words.

Kyuuzou entered the contraption with immense displeasure that was not shown, and his body remembered, in detail, where everything was supposed to be placed.

Heihachi waited, the controls ready, while Kyuuzou attached himself. He had never actually seen the process, but he did remember hearing of how it worked. He hoped, however, that it would be possible to draw Kyuuzou's soul back into his body. For who knows how far it could have wandered away in a month and a half?

Once Kyuuzou was ready,and everything was set into place, Heihachi sent up a silent prayer to the rice gods and turned on the machine.

Kyuuzou's entire body was wracked in pain, but he did not scream. The external pain was nothing compared to the internal pain he had endured. Still...he felt the energy searching him, searching for a clue of where to put back that which had been lost to him. That searching, that searing agony under the impartial gaze of technology made him yearn to both be human or to just remain as he was. Either was a better option compared to his current condition of pain so great it conquered even what Kyuuzou believed Death would feel like.

Kanbei heard Kyuuzou's silent scream, and his hands involuntarily moved to his ears. He drew his hand away from his left earring, having felt it being far too warm. He took it off, nearly burning his bare skin, and looked at it.

It was glowing the same color of the light that was washing through and over Kyuuzou.

Did that mean...?

Kanbei found a lead that allowed air in and opened a section to place the feather earring in.

It zoomed into the main tank, and Kyuuzou instinctively caught it.

For the first time in a long time, Kyuuzou allowed himself a quiet, faint moan of pain that Kanbei felt reverberate through his body.

'Maybe it would have been better to stay as I had been...'

The machine turned itself off after the process was complete, and Kanbei watched the wires fall away from Kyuuzou, depriving him of any support. Kyuuzou opened the door, picked up the swords that were lying next to it, and lunged at Take. After cutting him from groin to crown, finally straightened up to meet Kanbei's eyes.

'I'm back,' they said to him, calm and controlled, while Kyuuzou leaned heavily against the console.

Heihachi carefully went over to him, and took one glove off to touch Kyuuzou's skin. He broke out into a large smile when he felt it.

"You're human again!"

"Yes." was Kyuuzou's only reply as he fell to kneeling on the floor, his body readjusting to the extra weight of memories that were coming back to him. He stood again as Kanbei came over to him, sheathing his swords that had finally returned to him, and stood up.

"Let's go."

Heihachi looked at Kanbei, who nodded. it'd be good to be back to the village sooner rather than later. The two fell into step next to the newly-healed man, and they exited the same way they came in, with as little resistance as before.

When they stopped for the night, Kyuuzou gracefully collapsed next to a tree. The entire time they had been walking, memories, one by one, had reminded him of the scars on his soul, of the emotions that were his, the skills that were his, and reminded him of the man that he had been. Still, Kyuuzou felt that small corner of himself that was not quite healed, felt the icy prison he could still return to if neccesary, and he wondered briefly why it was still there before falling deeply asleep, his head lolling on his shoulder on a pillow of hair.

Heihachi looked over at the sleeping form, and then turned back to building up the fire.

"Kyuuzou's back, whether for better or worse is to be seen."

fin


	15. Epilouge: Remembering

Much Later...

Kanbei let his hand fall from his feather earing, and he slowly stood, brushing off the snow that had accumulated on him as he knelt in the snow, unaware of the cold, or that it had even begun to snow.

"Such a sentimental fool," he murmured to the emptiness.

He let the tips of his fingers lightly brush against the hilt of one of the twin katanas in front of him, the chill a reminder of the past.

He stood there a moment longer, looking at all the other graves before him, before turning back to the one in front of him.

"We never told each other, did we."

The words he murmured were meaningless to all but the dead.

He turned around and as he walked away, in the reflection of the swords, one could almost discern a shadow of a smaller, slighter, but no less deadly form walking beside him.


End file.
